Various business establishments, such as convenience stores, gaming establishments, and the like, perform numerous business transactions involving exchange of cash on a daily basis. To reduce the threat of theft of the cash, the cash is often deposited into a safe. There are various kinds of safes. For example, some safes allow cash to be deposited directly into the safe via slots (“cash drop”); other safes accept cash which is first placed into an envelope and then the envelope is placed into the safe via slots (“envelope drop”). The cash is deposited into a safe without having to open the safe, thereby reducing the threat of theft.
There are a variety of drop safes, vending machines, and the like which accept money from a user and safely store it. Such drop safes usually include a bill reader, or a currency validator, and a container, such as a cash box or a cash cassette, which is located in the safe or the vending machine's cabinet or chassis. Some safes contain bill acceptors which deposit the money into a receptacle that may be accessed by opening the bill acceptor itself. The bill reader or bill validator checks the validity of the cash bill and counts the cash received.
Access of the various components of the drop safe is needed for removal of the cash container and servicing of the bill reader, its mechanics and the safe's electronics. One disadvantage of the currently available drop safes is that their cash container, as well as the safe electronics, are located within the safe, making access for service and removal of cash somewhat inefficient.
One solution involves mounting the cash container on wheels, slides or the like, and allowing for manual removal of the cash container after the safe is opened. One example of such a drop safe is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,813,510 to Rademacher. Rademacher describes a drop safe and a change making mechanism wherein the user first opens a safe door, thereby exposing the interior of the drop safe. After the door is opened, the user can then pull out a shelf mounting a coin dispensing mechanism. Once the coin dispensing mechanism is pulled out, the currency may be loaded.
As another example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,595,606 to Gunst describes a cash dispenser with roll-out drawer assembly. In Gunst, a cash drawer assembly of the cash dispenser has a frame with sliding members near the top and wheels at the front. In order to access the cash drawer assembly, the user must first open a door of the cash dispenser and then roll out the cash drawer assembly.
In solutions such as these, the user has to perform at least two steps to access the cash box, the bill validator or safe's electronic components. First, the user must open the safe door, and second, the user must manually move the cash cassette or the bill validator to a position where it can then be removed or repaired in a separate step. This at least two-step process of making various drop safe's components available for removal or maintenance is not always efficient. For example, when armored security transport needs to access the drop safe to move cash currency, it is preferable for the armored transport personnel to be able to move the cash from inside the drop safe to the transport as quickly as possible. Thus, there still exists a need for a drop safe wherein the cash cassette, the bill acceptor, and/or electronics can be more easily accessed for removal or servicing. In particular, there exists a need for a drop safe wherein various components of the drop safe, such as the cash cassette, the bill validator, etc., would become accessible for service and/or removal upon the opening of the safe door.
Another solution to the problem of easy access of safe electronics and cash cassette is provided for by a number of drop safes and vending machines where some of the safe components are mounted directly onto the door of the safe and thus pivot with the door when the door is opened. Examples of such mechanisms are shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,386,903 to Rothschild et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,067,530 to Brooks, Jr. et al., incorporated herein by reference, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,918,720 to Robinson et al. Robinson, for example, teaches a safe for storage of money, where money is inserted into a bill validator, which is then conveyed into partitioned compartments coupled to a safe door. The door of the safe rotates about hinges, and once opened, the partitioned compartments containing the sorted cash can be accessed. Similarly, Brooks discloses a cash management system wherein a bill validator is fixedly mounted to the inside surface of a door of an electronic safe. The user feeds bills into the bill validator from the outside surface of the safe door. Opening the safe door rotates the bill validator to a position where it can be accessed by the user.
However, such systems are limited in that the kinds and types of safe components which can be mounted on the door are restricted by the size and construction of the door. A large cash receptacle cannot be easily mounted onto a door without obstructing the opening of the door. A large cash receptacle or a bill acceptor attached to the safe door also requires a large space for pivoting of the cash box or the bill acceptor. This requirement places limits on construction of the safe. In addition, safe doors are generally heavy. Mounting of additional components on the door would make them even heavier, especially when the additional component, such as a safe box is itself heavy due to the weight of the currency being stored within. The increased weight of the door, makes opening of the door even more difficult. In addition, pulling out of the cash cassette also requires some additional maneuvering.
Various embodiments of the present invention are designed to address one or more of the discussed drawbacks.